presentation on ancient travellers

7/29/2019 Presentation on Ancient Travellers

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THROUGH THE EYES OFTRAVELLERSPerceptions of Society

AVANIKA GUPTA, SADHVI KUMAR,SANJANA AHUJA & SRAVYA RAO

XII - H


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WHY DID PEOPLE TRAVEL?

In search of work

To escape from natural disasters

As traders, merchants, soldiers, priests & pilgrims

Driven by a sense of adventure


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How was travelling different

and how feasible was it?

Travel took very long and it took 40 days to travel from Multan orDaulatabad to Delhi.

It was more risky and dangerous but since these were also traderoutes the state had some duty to provide security and protection.

It seems from Ibn Battuta's account the problems associated withtravel could include robbery, getting lost, adverse weather, illnessesor homesickness.


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TRAVELLERS ACCOUNTSThose who travelled encountered a world different from their own and

often accounted anything they found unusual or remarkable.

Surviving accounts often vary in terms of subject matter. They may deal witAffairs of the courtReligious Issues

Architectural features and monumentsPopular customs, folklore and traditions of the land


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Ibn Battuta


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Ibn Battuta Moroccan Muslim traveller and philosopher

Born in Tangier, Morocco, on the 24th of February 1304

Educated in Islamic law, Sharia

Ibn Battuta's book of travels - Rihla

He travelled to Syria, Iraq, Persia, Yemen, Oman, east Africa, India,

China and various other countries in central and southern Asia


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FINDINGSThe travelogue of Ibn Battuta tells us of the political system, economy

as well as society, culture, food habits etc.Religious: growth of Islam in India due to lower taxes and job opportunities.

Most of the rural population still remained Hindu

Society: law and order issues.

dietary habit of India in great detail, including use of ghee as wellexport of rice from India to other parts of the Arab world.


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Political: Muhammad bin Tughlaks sultanate of Delhi

The establishment of Sultanate was not yet firm and it is for this

reason that Tughlak was welcoming scholars from Arabia andPersia to work as officers.

2 rebellions in Delhi Sultanate-

South: which Tughlak could not suppress

Near Delhi: which he crushed. Conflict between Tughlak and a Sufi saint indicates that the Sufis

were popular among masses and had large following.

Whimsical and cruel nature of Tughlak resulted in the trial ofhundreds of people.


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Economy: Ibn Battuta's travel in India also coincided with severe famine in

North

Ibn Battuta was paid a salary of 5000 silver dinars in comparisonto an average family living off 5 silver dinars. This may indicatelack of administrative structure having been established.

The customs duties payable in India for import of horses also findsaccount in his travelogue.

The account talks of the Indian traders from Khambat and Malabarin Aden who were very rich. The mention of Chinese Junk boats inMalabar indicates the thriving trade.


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AL-BIRUNI


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Born in 972 in Khwarizm (present day Uzbekistan)

Well versed in Syriac, Arabic, Hebrew, Persian & Sanskrit

Familiar with the works of Greek philosophers like Plato,having read them in Arabic translation.

Was taken as hostage to Ghazni in 1017by Sultan Mahmud

Developed a liking for the city and lived

their until he died at the age of 70

AL BIRUNI


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The Kitab-ul-HindAl-Birunis Kitab-ul-Hind, written in Arabic, is a simple yet voluminoustext, divided into 80 chapters. It covered subjects such

Philosophy FestivalsAstronomyWeights and Measures

The chapters followed a distinctive structure, beginning with a question,followed by a description based on Sanskrit traditions and concludingwith a comparison with other cultures.

AlchemyManners and Customs IconographyLaws


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OVERCOMING BARRIERS OF

UNDERSTANDING

Al-Biruni discussed several barriers that travellers faced while trying tounderstand the local traditions.

LANGUAGE

According to him, Sanskrit was so different from Persian and Arabic thatideas and concepts could not be easily translated from one language toanother

DIFFERENCE IN RELIGIOUS BELIEFS AND PRACTICES

SELF ABSORPTION AND CONSEQUENT INSULARITY OF LOCALPOPULATION.


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RALPH FITCH


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RALPH FitchWas born in 1551 in Derby, England.

Gentleman merchant of London and one of the earliest Englishtravellers and traders to visit Mesopotamia, the Persian Gulf andIndian Ocean, India and Southeast Asia.

Wrote detailed descriptions of south-east Asiathat he saw in 15831591, and upon his returnto England, in 1591, became a valuable consultantfor the British East India Company.

Died in 1611 in London.


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Fitchs account was restored and published by

John Horton Ryley of the Hakluyt Society, about300 years after it was written.It focused mainly on the enormous resources ofthe East Indies, their economic activities and

links of trade.When written, it was the first English account ofthe subcontinent and proved to be very useful tothe East India Company company as they used itto study the commercial history of the region.

It also mentioned The grandeur of kings Exotic animals such as the white elephant The vibrant markets

FITCHS ACCOUNT


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Agra

Allahabad

Benares

Patna

Kuch Behar

Hughli

Chittagong


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MARCO POLO


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AbOUT MARCO POLO Marco Polo was an Italian explorer from Venice famous for his travels through

Asia. He was one of the first Europeans to travel into Mongolia, China and India.

His travels were recorded in a book called The million or The Description of theWorld was later translated into many languages, became the greatest travelogue.

It helped to make Europeans very interested in tradingwith China and the Far East, that led to the explorations

of Columbus and many others. It changed the course of

Asian history.

Dates of Exploration: 1271-1292

Name of Ship: Dummas
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Marco_Polo_portrait.jpg


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MARCOS TRIP TO China

In 1271, Marco Polo went to China withhis father and uncle.

It took Marco 3 years to get to China. They followed a road called the Silk Road,

which linked Europe to Asia

To get to China he had to go throughArmenia, Georgia, Persia andAfghanistan.

He had to go over the PamirMountains and across the

Taklamakan and Gobi Deserts.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Marco_Polo_traveling.JPG


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Going Back Home The ships they went back home on were called Chinese junk ships,

the most hi-tech ships Kublai Khan had.

It took eighteen months to drop the princess off in the Middle East.

They had to go through the China Sea, past India, Indonesia andMalaya.

Return Journey took about 2 years Covering southern and western

coasts of India, Sri Lanka etc Only 18 out of 600 passengers made it through the tough journey.


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INFLUENCES AND TEACHINGS Marco Polos book influenced much of later Europe.

It influenced other explorers including Christopher Columbus, as itcreated awareness about China and India.

Marco explained life style of the people, towns, terrain, climate,languages spoken, religious beliefs, social customs and practices,ruling class etc which is a valuable information, drawing attention of

west to India.

Y
http://www.thirteen.org/marcopolo/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/marco_polo_il_milione_chapter_cxxiii_and_cxxiv.jpg


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BIBLIOGRAPHY THEMES IN INDIAN HISTORT (PART II), NCERT

BRITANNICA ENCYCLOPEDIA

WORLD BOOK ENCYCLOPEDIA

THE FIRST ENGLISHMEN IN INDIA - J. COURTENAY LOCKE

www.renaissanceastrology.com

www.iranchamber.com

www.ibnbattuta.berkeley.edu

www.geography.about.com

www.silk-road.com

www.enchantedlearning.com
http://www.renaissanceastrology.com/http://www.iranchamber.com/http://www.ibnbattuta.berkeley.edu/http://www.geography.about.com/http://www.silk-road.com/http://www.enchantedlearning.com/http://www.enchantedlearning.com/http://www.silk-road.com/http://www.silk-road.com/http://www.silk-road.com/http://www.geography.about.com/http://www.ibnbattuta.berkeley.edu/http://www.iranchamber.com/http://www.renaissanceastrology.com/

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